Vehicle doors can include electrically-powered equipment, the electrical supply originating from the vehicle. A cable harness passes from the vehicle body to the door through the door edge. A hole between the door hinges in the door edge can be provided for passage of the cable harness. A seal can be provided between the vehicle body and the door.
There are several drawbacks to this vehicle door. In some cases, it is difficult to gain access to the inside of the door to manually introduce the cable harness once the door is assembled. The operator positions the harness blindly using one hand, which can result in poor assembly quality. The hole in the edge of the passenger compartment also needs to be large enough to allow passage of the connectors. Further, providing the seal between the vehicle body and the door is expensive and complex, as it is made from numerous compartments.
French patent application 2,758,113 discloses a vehicle door including a sealing sleeve applied to an edge of the door where the door is hinged on the vehicle body. A channel in the sheet metal of the door defines a passage for the sleeve. There are several drawbacks to this door. For one, the door and the sleeve are complex. It is also time-consuming to create the channel in the metalwork of the door.
The present invention provides a method of electrically connecting the electrical components of the door to the body of the vehicle in a manner that is simpler and less expensive than the prior art.